Food Pantry Advocacy Toolkit (2018)

Philabundance created this resource to help food pantries and other organizations working in emergency food and the safety net to become effective anti-hunger advocates.

In the current environment, it is important for all those who care about safety net services - such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) - to raise their voice in the public debate.

Creating a culture of advocacy with organizations and the emergency food system is a journey. With this toolkit, pantries and others can take steps to develop and nurture that culture among staff, board members, volunteers, consumers and others.

Some advocacy strategies highlighted include:

Collecting consumer stories

Supporting voter registration

Educating the public on hunger and food insecurity

Engaging clients in advocacy efforts

Attending town hall meetings

Contacting or meeting with elected officials

The toolkit discusses what kinds of advocacy related activities a 501(c)(3) nonprofit can engage in. Tools are also provided to help organizations craft an advocacy plan.

This document is intended to be shared widely. The full toolkit can be downloaded below.